Winter Trophy Bonanza - US Chess Online Rated Event
 
AT LEAST TWENTY FIVE TROPHIES AS PRIZES!
 
DATE & TIME: Saturday, January 30th at 10:00am Central Time. This event is open to all K-12 students. Current US Chess membership is required.
 
FREE GAME ANALYSIS: All participants will be invited to an analysis session via Zoom with titled players upon conclusion of their section!
 
US CHESS MEMBERSHIP: You may join or renew your membership here. 
 
PLAYING SITE: https://lichess.org/ Players must join lichess. Membership is free. 
 
PRIZES: Trophies for top three in each section, plus top grade in each section. No tie-breaks: everyone who ties for a prize is considered a co-winner. One prize per person. Free entry into an upcoming event may be chosen instead of a trophy for those who wish. Prizes may take up to a week after the event concludes as games need to be checked for fair play violations. These checks are done through the proprietary methods used by lichess. All potential fair play violations will be reviewed by the tournament organizers.
 
ENTRY FEE: $30. Players will receive an email with a link and password to join the appropriate section of the tournament. If the link is not received within 12 hours of entering, please contact the organizers at td@ia-chess.com 
 
BYES and LATE JOIN: Online registration closes on January 30th at 9:15am Central Time, contact td@ia-chess.com if you wish to register after registration is closed. Players may request a 1/2 bye in round one (players who "late join" after 10:00am will also receive a 1/2 bye). No other 1/2 byes can be requested. 
 
FORMAT AND TIME CONTROL: G/10+5. All four sections are a 5-round Swiss. Rounds 2, 3, 4, and 5 will be paired five minutes after completion of the final game in the section, so each section will run as an independent event. Only US Chess Online Quick ratings are affected. Lichess Rapid Ratings are used for pairings. You have to be logged in and have joined the tournament in order to be paired.
 
FOUR SECTIONS: Current US Chess Membership is required
 
K-12 Section (all students can enter, but grade 8/below are eligible only for top three prizes)
 
Trophies for
1st 
2nd 
3rd 
top grade 12 
top grade 11 
top grade 10 
top grade 9   
 
K-8 Section (students in grades K-8 can enter, but grade 5/below are eligible only for top three prizes)
 
Trophies for
1st 
2nd 
3rd 
top grade 8 
top grade 7 
top grade 6 
 
K-5 Section (students in grades K-5 can enter, but grade 3/below are eligible only for top three prizes)
 
Trophies for
1st 
2nd 
3rd 
top grade 5 
top grade 4 
 
K-3 Section (students in grades K-3 can enter)
 
Trophies for
1st 
2nd 
3rd
top grade 3
top grade 2
top grade 1
top K/below
 
 QUESTIONS: Please email any questions to td@ia-chess.com 
 
FAIR PLAY:
 
In case any fair play violations are discovered, none of the games played by the violator will be US Chess rated. For the purposes of standings, any players who lose to someone who violates fair play rules will be given 1/2 point. Any wins or draws against fair play violators will stand, though the games will not be rated.
 
Winners may be invited to a quick Zoom interview with the organizers after the event.
 
By registering for this tournament you agree that your child's lichess username might be revealed on player registration  and prize winner lists.